their dedication and perfection was marred the foundation of our military strength. as we discussed numbers, budgets and strategic priorities this morning we will not lose sight of those men and women serving across the globe. as you all know there will being depends on the decisions we make in washington. today the department of defense faces a significant challenge of conducting long-term challenge budgeting at a time up in security in terms of the security challenges we face around the globe in the levels of defense spending at home. even as the military emerges and recovers from more than a decade of sustained conflict in iraq and afghanistan, we confront an array of complex threats with varying degree to include the persistence of violent extremism throughout weak states and ungoverned states in the middle east and north africa. the proliferation of dangerous weapons and materials, the rise of new powers, the risk of regional conflicts in the united states faceless nameless silent and distracted cyberattacks, debilitating dangerous curse of human despair and pov